Safe.



PATENTED SEPT. 6, 1904..- B.F.SPARR.

SAFE.

APPLIUATION FILED SEPT. s. 1903.

N0 MODEL.

msw WMS yPatented. September 6, 1904.

BENJAMIN F. SPARR, OF NEVVYORK, N. Y.

\ SAFE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 769,240, dated September 6, 1904.- Application l'iled September 3, 1903. Serial No. 171,731. (No model.)

T0 all` whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN F. SPARE, aV citizen of the United States, residing in the borough of Brooklyn, city, county, and State: of New York, have invented certain new and-v useful Improvements in Safes, of; whichthe following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof.

This invention relates to boxes, safes, and,

in general, to such devices as are intended for receiving articles for safe-keeping.

The object of the invention is to provide such boxes, safes, and other devices with an alarm which shall be set in operation by any unauthorized handling or tampering with the device in which it is placed and which will remain in operation so long at least as the handling or tampering continues.

In carrying out the invention an electricallyoperated alarm is suitably located within the box, safe, or the container, and one or more attachments or contact` devices to close the .circuit `through the alarm are provided and are adapted to be operated by any disturbance to the box, safe or other container-such as,

for instance, tilting' the same, lifting the handle, opening the cover, &c.

The invention will be more fully described with reference to the accompanying drawingsin which- Y Y Figure lis aview in longitudinal vertical section of a box or casket'embodying the invention,the compartment for receiving articles be- `ing located entirely within the same.- Fig. 2 is a view in front elevation, partly broken away, of another box or casket embodying the in vention, the compartment for -receiving articles being secured upon the top of the base. Fig. 3 is a view in horizontal section of the base portion of either box, the plane upon which the section is taken beingindicated by the lines 3 3 in Figs. l and 2. Fig. l is aldea tail sectional view of the cover and one form of contact device adjacent thereto.

Referring to Figs. l, 2, and 3, the box or container comprises a base. portion ct and topportion .7), the alarm,'which comprises a'bell c, battery d, and electrical connections,`be'ing arranged in the base portion, while the com- -circuit through the bell. Vlish a circuit through the bell when the cover -partment for receiving articles for safe-keepstance, it is shown in Fig. l-or whether it be secured to the top of the' base portion, as it is shown in Fig. 2. The shape and construction of theV box or container is also immaterial to the invention, except that it is preferable to provide perforations in the bottom thereof (indicated at e in Fig. 3.) for the escape of the sound of the alarm, and also to provide perforations in the top of the box or container just beneath the cover, (indicated at f in Fig. l.) The latterperforations are provided so that if the perforations e should be plugged up the sound will escape through the perfor-ations f as soon as the cover is raised. It will be obviousthat the alarm may be arranged and constructed in various ways within the container. In the present case the bell c is mounted upon a balanced contact device, and its weight serves to throw such device out of center and close a circuit through the alarm when the container is tilted. The balanced contact device may comprise, Fig. l, a carrier-.block g, supported upon a` concave surface 7L in the bottom of the container by ball-bearings el, which are retained in a groove j' in the block. A band 7c is also 'provided above the bell c and serves to prevent the bell and block from beingdisplacedwhen the container is'tur'ned upside down. In addition to the foregoing' the balanced contact device also comprises a metallic ring Z', secured around the carrier- ,block g, said *.ring being adaptedv to connect two contact-ringsy m and a, mounted in the base when thecarrier-block is moved from .its central position within Ithe concavity by the tilting of the container, thus'establishing a In order to estabis raised, an attachment 0 is placed in the frame or partition of the container adjacent to the cover, `said attachment comprising a spring-actuated plunger held rmlyV against the action of the spring by the-cover.l When the cover is raised, the spring ca'uses the plunger to riseand bringthecontacts p andato- IOO gether, thus establishing a circuit through the bell. The handle fr may also be made to close a circuit through the alarm in any suitable way. As shown in Fig. 1, the handle is connected to a spring-finger s, forming one terminal of a circuit through the alarm, which linger is lifted when the handle is raised and contacts with the other terminal, s, of the circuit.

It is a desirable that some means be provided by which the alarm may be prevented from operating when the owner or `some authorized person desires to open or otherwise make use of the boX or container. For this purpose a combination-lock t is provided upon the exterior of the box or container, by means of which a bolt t is made to act against a switch-bladea. The switch-blade is pivoted at a and normally hangs freely in a vertical position, its lower end resting against a terminal a2, which may be formed, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, from an L-sliaped strip of metal. As will presently be described, the current to the alarm is compelled to iiow through the switch-blade u to the metallic strip a2, and when these two terminals of the switch are thrown out of contact by throwing the lockt into its locked position it will be impossible to complete the circuit through the alarm by the closing of any of the contact devices.

The electrical connections between the several contact devices, the battery, the bell, and the switch will be readily understood upon reference to Fig. 1. As there illustrated, each contact device is adapted to close a circuit through the battery, bell, and switch, the switch being represented in its normal position to transmit current from the blade u to the terminal u2. If the handle fr be raised so that the terminals s and s' are connected, current will flow as follows: to battery-terminal 1, to battery-terminal 2,' to bell-terminal 3, to bell-terminal 4, through the switch to conductor 5, and back to the contact device at the handle. If the cover be raised, the plunger of attachment 0 is released, and current will flow as follows: to battery-terminal 1, to battery-terminal'2, to bell-terminal 3, to bell-terminal 4, through the switch to conductor 5', and back to the contacts of attachment 0. If the container be tilted, the ring Z will connect the rings m and a, and the circuit will be established as follows: to batteryterminal 1, to battery-terminal 2, to bell-terminal 3, to bell-terminal 4, through the switch by conductor 5H back to ring m of contacts m y71.

In Fig. 4 a modification of the attachment o is illustrated. Around the T-shaped plunger o a sleeve 02 is arranged, having a broad circular flange 03. The sleeve and iiange form one terminal of a circuit 'through the alarm, while the spring actuated plunger, which works within, but is out of contact with, the sleeve formsl the other terminal. When the cover is raised, the lower end of the plunger under the action of the spring will contact with the iiange n3 and establish the circuit. Then the circuit is thus estaliilished, if the plunger should be pressed down in an ei'ort to break the circuit the circuit would be reestablished between the top of the sleeve and the top of the plunger. lVhen this forni of attachment is employed adjacent to the cover, it is preferable to connect both terminals of ythe contact device for the handle with the plunger and the sleeve, respectively, and for this purpose contacts r and f//r may he provided upon the cover, the contact fr being connected with one terminal and the contact fw with the other terminal of the contact device for the handle. In this wayT if a circuit be first established through the contact device for the handle and afterward broken on account of the removal of the cover and the contact devices 1 and w, attached thereto, then the circuitwill immediately be remade through the operation of the plunger, as above described.

It will be evidentthat various other changes may be made in the contact devices and in the arrangement and construction of various parts of the apparatus. All these changes are within the scope of the invention, which is not limited to any particular construction or arrangement.

I claim as my invention- 1. In a box or safe, the combination of a cover, an electricallyoperated alarm, and means to close the circuit through the alarm when the cover is opened. said means comprising a plunger connected with one terminal ofthe circuit and a sleeve around and normally out of contact with the plunger connected with the other terminal of the circuit.

2. In a box or safe, the combination of a cover, an electrically-operated alarm, means to close the circuit through the alarm when the cover is opened, said means comprising a plunger connected with one terminal of the circuit and a sleeve around the plunger connected with the other terminal of the circuit and a handle on the cover adapted to close the circuit one terminal of which is comiected with said plunger and the other terminal of which is connected with said sleeve.

3. In a box or safe having atop portion for the reception of articles and a base portion having perforations therein, said hase portion containing an electrically-operated alarm halanced therein and adapted to be thrown outof equilibrium to operate the alarm when the box or safe is moved.

This specification signed and witnessed this 29th day of August, A. l). 1903.

BENJAMIN F. SPARK.

In presence of4 JOHN M. Scontri, LUoiUs E. VARNuY.

lOO 

